Charles Leclerc retained his podium finish in Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after a post-race stewards investigation into a fuel infringement, but his Ferrari team were fined $55,000.

The Monegasque driver finished third behind six-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes and Red Bull’s Dutchman Max Verstappen.

His Ferrari car was checked in the pit lane before the race and found to have infringed the strict fuel regulations. It was reported to race stewards who investigated afterwards.

In a pre-race statement, the sport’s ruling body, the International Motoring Federation said there was a “significant difference” between the amount of fuel in the car and that declared by Ferrari.

A later statement said: “The stewards determined that the team should be fined $55,000 for its inaccurate declaration.”

The outcome of the probe was seen as a lenient sanction for the Italian team after a period during which their cars and performance had been the subject of much scepticism from rivals.